U.S. patent number 8,245,983 [Application Number 11/651,229] was granted by the patent office on 2012-08-21 for system and method for railroad wayside monitoring.
This patent grant is currently assigned to General Electric Company. Invention is credited to Keith Gilbertson.
United States Patent |
8,245,983 |
Gilbertson |
August 21, 2012 |
System and method for railroad wayside monitoring
Abstract
A system and method for communicating information between
wayside equipment and a railcar is provided, wherein the
communication system includes a wayside monitoring system located
at the wayside of a railway, wherein the wayside monitoring system
is configured to generate wayside system data responsive to an
operational characteristic of the railcar. A wayside communication
device communicated with the wayside monitoring system to receive
the wayside system data is also provided, wherein the wayside
communication device is configured to generate digital wayside data
and transmit at least one of the wayside system data and the
digital wayside data to the railcar via a dispatch voice channel.
Furthermore, an on-board communication device is provided, wherein
the on-board communication device is configured to receive the
digital wayside data from the wayside communication device via the
dispatch voice channel.
Inventors: |
Gilbertson; Keith (Blue
Springs, MO) |
Assignee: |
General Electric Company
(Schenectady, NY)
|
Family
ID: |
39593441 |
Appl.
No.: |
11/651,229 |
Filed: |
January 9, 2007 |
Prior Publication Data
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|
|
|
Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20080164380 A1 |
Jul 10, 2008 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
246/167R;
246/169R |
Current CPC
Class: |
B61L
15/0027 (20130101); B61L 1/20 (20130101); B61L
27/0094 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B61L
3/22 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;246/169R,169A,169D,169S,167R,187B,182R,2R,4,6,23,62 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Morano; S. Joseph
Assistant Examiner: Smith; Jason C
Attorney, Agent or Firm: GE Global Patent Operation Kramer;
John A.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A communication system for communicating information between
wayside equipment and a passing rail vehicle, wherein the
communication system comprises: a wayside monitoring system located
at a wayside of a railway, wherein said wayside monitoring system
generates wayside system data; and a wayside communication device
communicated with said wayside monitoring system to receive said
wayside system data, wherein said wayside communication device
generates digital wayside data based on the wayside system data,
queries the passing rail vehicle to determine if the passing rail
vehicle is equipped for digital communication, and transmits said
digital wayside data to the passing rail vehicle via a dispatch
voice channel, wherein said wayside monitoring system includes at
least one wayside sensing device for sensing at least one
operational characteristic of the passing rail vehicle, and wherein
said at least one wayside sensing device is communicated with said
wayside communication device.
2. The communication system of claim 1, wherein said at least one
wayside sensing device includes at least one of a hot bearing
sensor, a hot wheel sensor, a dragging equipment sensor, a high
load sensor, a wide load sensor, a high water sensor and a falling
rock sensor.
3. The communication system of claim 1, wherein said wayside
communication device is configured for transmitting data in a
digital format and an analog format via said dispatch voice
channel.
4. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the system further
comprises an on-board communication device is configured for
receiving data in a digital format and an analog format via said
dispatch voice channel.
5. The communication system of claim 1, further comprising an
on-board communication device that includes a digital radio
interface for receiving said digital wayside data from said wayside
communication device via said dispatch voice channel.
6. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the wayside
communication device is configured to transmit the wayside system
data to the passing rail vehicle in an analog format over the
dispatch voice channel, and wherein an on-board communication
device includes an analog radio interface for receiving said
wayside system data from said wayside communication device via said
dispatch voice channel.
7. The communication system of claim 1, wherein an on-board
communication device is communicated with a digital announcement
device for communication of said digital wayside data to on-board
crewmembers.
8. The communication system of claim 7, wherein said digital
announcement device is at least one of a digital display device and
an audio device.
9. The communication system of claim 1, wherein said digital
wayside data is transmitted in a digital format when the rail
vehicle is determined to be equipped for digital communication.
10. The communication system of claim 1, wherein said digital
wayside data is transmitted in an analog format when the rail
vehicle is determined to not be equipped for digital
communication.
11. A communication system for communicating information between a
wayside monitoring system and a rail vehicle traveling on a
railway, wherein the wayside monitoring system generates analog
wayside system data responsive to an operational characteristic of
the rail vehicle, wherein the communication system comprises: a
wayside communication device communicated with said wayside
monitoring system to receive the analog wayside system data,
wherein said wayside communication device generates digital wayside
data responsive to the analog wayside system data, queries the rail
vehicle to determine if the rail vehicle is equipped for digital
communication, and transmits said digital wayside data via a
dispatch voice channel; and an on-board communication device on the
rail vehicle, wherein said on-board communication device receives
said digital wayside data via said dispatch voice channel.
12. The communication system of claim 11, wherein said digital
wayside data is transmitted in a digital format when the rail
vehicle is determined to be equipped for digital communication.
13. The communication system of claim 11, wherein said digital
wayside data is transmitted in an analog format when the rail
vehicle is determined to not be equipped for digital communication.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to monitoring the
components of a railroad car traveling in a train and more
particularly to an improved system and method for transferring
information between wayside equipment and a railroad car in a
train.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
As is known, railroad cars have been used to transport everything
from commerce, such as goods and products, to military hardware,
such as weapons and supplies, to people all around the country and
all around the world. In fact, railway transportation is so
important that a large portion of the economy relies on the
railways as a mode of transportation to safely transport people
between destinations and to safely deliver goods and materials to
manufacturers and distributors. As such, any disruption in this
service creates a ripple effect that can be felt throughout the
economy. Thus, in order to avoid disruption of the railway service
as well as to maintain a safe environment for railroad personnel
and railroad passengers, it is essential that all key components of
the railroad cars are maintained in safe and proper working
condition. It is important that key components of the railroad cars
are monitored to identify any existing conditions or potential
conditions that might cause a failure of a railroad car component
resulting in a loss of life or in the possible damage to the train
and its cargo, as well as a failure of the train to meet its
intended delivery schedule.
In order to accomplish this task, detector systems are typically
positioned along the rails to monitor and detect the operational
condition of the railroad cars as they past the detectors. Each
time a train passes these detector systems, typically classified as
Wayside Equipment, the detector systems communicate information
responsive to the operational condition of the railroad car to an
operational office via a phone line or to the train crew via a VHF
radio that interfaces with the Wayside Equipment over the "dispatch
channel" used for that territory. The dispatch channel is the
communications channel (i.e. frequency) that the locomotive crew
has their VHF radio tuned to so that they can hear directions from
the railroad dispatcher. For example, one type of detector system
currently in use is a Hot Bearing/Hot Wheel (HB/HW) detector
system. Referring to FIG. 1, a Hot Bearing/Hot Wheel (HB/HW)
detector system 100 in accordance with the prior art is shown,
wherein the HB/HW detector system 100 includes at least one
detector apparatus 102 that is communicated with a central office
104 and with the train crew via a voice radio 106. The detector
apparatus 102 analyzes the condition of the bearings and/or wheels
of the passing railcars (e.g. for "hot spots") and broadcasts any
detected defects to the train crew via the voice radio 106. Any
additional alarms and/or data may also be communicated back to a
central office 104. Additionally, various other types of detectors
may be connected to the unit, such as a dragging equipment detector
or other detectors that typically provide simple contact
closures.
Another type of detector system currently in use is a "talker
system." Referring to FIG. 2, a "talker system" 200, in accordance
with the prior art, is a defect detector system 200 that includes
one or more detection devices 202, wherein the detection devices
202 typically provide contact closures when a defect is detected.
The defect unit then reports the defect to the train crew typically
by broadcasting the alarm over the voice radio 106. As above, any
additional alarms and/or data may also be communicated back to the
central office 104. This type of "talker system" 200 differs from
that in FIG. 1 in that the "talker system" does not typically
include a hot bearing or hot wheel scanner. Still another type of
detector system currently in use includes an HB/HW detector system
100 that is integrated with an AEI Tag Reading system. Referring to
FIG. 3, HB/HW detector system 100 integrated with an AEI Tag
Reading system 108 in accordance with the prior art is shown,
wherein AEI tag readers obtain car ID information by reading an ID
tag that is affixed to each railcar. This car ID information can
then be used to better locate a defect, such as a hot bearing or
hot wheel. Additionally, the car ID information could be used to
more efficiently locate a defect rather than trying to identify the
location of the defect by counting the axles. Moreover, actual
scanned heat data for each wheel bearing on a railcar can be
associated with a particular railcar to allow better analysis of
the railcar bearings to order to better predict when they are going
to fail. This allows bearings that have typically higher
temperatures to be tracked even though they are below the alarm
threshold.
Referring to FIG. 4, current detector systems commonly have two
methods or links for communicating information. One communication
path is to transmit data to a central or local office and may be
accomplished via any established network, including telephone
lines, wireless networks, cell phones, Ethernets, etc. Data can be
sent to the office locations and can include everything from the
most recent detection information to the entire train log with
complete thermal data collected from the train, to alarm and/or
diagnostic data. However, in alarm situations, this "data" link is
not adequate to identify an emergency situation and take necessary
action to prevent a possible disaster. Another communication path
is to transmit data directly to the onboard train crew. This is
typically accomplished by the detectors transmitting a synthesized
voice or recorded voice message via a VHF voice radio as the train
passes, wherein the message includes the name of the railroad, the
location of the detector, the type of detector and the Alarm status
(i.e. summary result of the train analyzed . . . such as "No
Defects Detected"). Moreover, alarm messages may typically contain
additional information, such as side and axle location for Hot
Wheel or Hot Bearing detectors. This broadcast can take any where
from 10 to 45 seconds even if there are no alarms.
Referring again to FIG. 4, a typical interface between the defect
detector unit and a voice radio in accordance with the prior art is
shown. To effect a radio transmission, the defect detector unit
activates a "Push-To-Talk" or similar interface line of a standard
radio to put the radio into transmit mode, thus enabling the radio
microphone or other modulation input. The defect detector unit then
plays back the appropriate recorded or synthesized voice message
and applies the message to the radio modulation input. This "voice"
message is then transmitted from the wayside radio to its intended
destination. The wayside radio is configured to monitor a main or
"road" frequency used by the dispatcher to communicate to the
onboard train crew via the radio installed on the locomotive. The
onboard train crew will then hear the broadcast message across the
radio speaker and appropriate action will be taken if required. It
should be appreciated that some radios have a "busy" indication
(identified as "busy" on the block diagram of FIG. 4), which is an
output from the radio that indicates that the radio channel is
busy. The defect detector system will use this to inhibit radio
broadcast until the channel is clear. Moreover, some systems can be
equipped with a "re-broadcast" function. If the on-board train crew
did not hear or understand a radio broadcast, this function allows
the train crew operator to transmit a sequence of Dual Tone
Multi-Frequency (DTMF) tones, as capable from standard locomotive
radios, to the wayside radio to trigger a re-broadcast signal to
the defect detector unit causing the defect detector unit to repeat
the last radio transmission.
One reason that radio broadcasting is used is that it currently
provides the quickest and easiest method to ensure that proper
action is taken in an emergency situation. For example, each time
the train passes the defect detector equipment, the broadcast
allows the crew the opportunity to validate the proper operation of
the equipment, including the radio system. In fact, on many
railroads, the train crews are required to have their radios set to
monitor the broadcast channels from the dispatch in order to "hear"
the broadcast and to validate that the detector and radio system
are working. Thus, when the train passes the defect detector
equipment, the crew verifies that they heard the defect detector
equipment broadcast a recorded message. Upon hearing this message,
the crew validates that the defect detector system (including the
radio system) is operating normally. If the crew receives a message
from the defect detector system that indicates a malfunction on the
railroad train, the crew then takes appropriate action. For
example, the operational status information may include wheel axle
numbers and position (left/right), so that in the event that HOT
bearing is detected, the crew could be directed to the axle
location on the train for inspection. In fact, most operating rules
dictate that if a Hot Bearing Alarm is identified, the train needs
to be stopped and the bearing inspected to determine if the car
needs to be cut out or if safe to proceed.
One disadvantage with the current system is that due to the need to
more closely monitor railroad equipment along critical rail lines,
the number of defect detectors installed along the rails has
increased substantially. Unfortunately, this increase in the number
of detectors installed along the wayside has had a negative impact
on the amount of available "Air Time" a dispatcher has to
communicate with the train crews. In fact, more and more of the
available dispatch radio channel bandwidth is being used up and as
such dispatchers are not able get airtime with all of the detectors
broadcasting. For example, the defect detector equipment is
typically set to broadcast directly to the crews each time the
train passes, not just when the defect detector equipment has
detected a problem. The increased number of defect detectors (e.g.
every 10 miles instead of every 50 miles), the increased miles of
double track lines and an increase in train traffic all cause an
increase in the number of radio transmissions (the typical normal
transmission takes about 30 second of air time) which results in a
reduced amount of available air time for the dispatcher to talk to
the trains.
This "radio congestion" is undesirable due for a number of reasons.
First, the increased radio traffic may result in messages being
transmitted well after the train has passed the defect detector
equipment. Second, the increased radio traffic may result in lost
or partial messages. If simultaneous message transmissions are
occurring the train crew may only receive a portion of the message
or the train crew may not hear the message at all. In an attempt to
reduce the number of radio transmissions from the defect detector
radios, some railroads have gone to exception reporting. This is
where the systems no longer broadcast messages to each passing
train, but only to those that have an alarm condition. Although
this has been successful in reducing the number of radio
transmissions, it creates a secondary problem in that, as discussed
hereinabove, the broadcast of non-alarm messages are used to
validate the proper operation of the system where engine crews
report detector locations that do not broadcast as they pass as
defective so that they may be repaired.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A communication system for communicating information between
wayside equipment and a railcar is provided, wherein the
communication system includes a wayside monitoring system located
at the wayside of a railway and wherein the wayside monitoring
system is configured to generate wayside system data responsive to
an operational characteristic of the railcar. A wayside
communication device communicated with the wayside monitoring
system to receive the wayside system data is also provided, wherein
the wayside communication device is configured to generate digital
wayside data and transmit at least one of the wayside system data
and the digital wayside data to the railcar via a dispatch voice
channel. Furthermore, an on-board communication device is provided,
wherein the on-board communication device is configured to receive
the digital wayside data from the wayside communication device via
the dispatch voice channel.
A method for communicating wayside digital data between a wayside
monitoring system and an on-board communication device disposed
on-board a railcar is provided and includes generating wayside
system data responsive to at least one operational characteristic
of a railcar and creating digital wayside data responsive to at
least a portion of the wayside system data. The method further
includes identifying whether the on-board communication device is
configured for digital communication, wherein if the on-board
communication device is configured for digital communication, the
digital wayside data is transmitted to the on-board communication
device, and if the on-board communication device is not configured
for digital communication, the wayside system data is transmitted
to the on-board communication device. Additionally, the method
includes communicating at least one of the digital wayside data and
the wayside system data to on-board crew.
A communication system for communicating information between a
wayside monitoring system and a railcar traveling on a railway,
wherein the wayside monitoring system generates analog wayside
system data responsive to an operational characteristic of the
railcar is provided, wherein the communication system includes a
wayside communication device communicated with the wayside
monitoring system to receive the analog wayside system data,
wherein the wayside communication device is configured to generate
digital wayside data responsive to the analog wayside system data
and transmit at least one of the analog wayside system data and the
digital wayside data via a dispatch voice channel and an on-board
communication device, wherein the on-board communication device is
configured to receive the at least one of the analog wayside system
data and the digital wayside data via the dispatch voice
channel.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
The foregoing and other features and advantages of the present
invention will be more fully understood from the following detailed
description of illustrative embodiments, taken in conjunction with
the accompanying drawings in which like elements are numbered alike
in the several Figures:
FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a typical Hot Bearing/Hot
Wheel Detector System, in accordance with the prior art;
FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a typical "Talker" Detector
System, in accordance with the prior art;
FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of the Hot Bearing/Hot Wheel
Detector System of FIG. 1 communicated with an AEI Tag Reader
System, in accordance with the prior art;
FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of a typical radio interface
between the defect detector system and the on-board locomotive
voice radio of the detector system of FIG. 1 and/or FIG. 2, in
accordance with the prior art;
FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram of a defect detector system
capable of digital communication, in accordance with a first
embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 6 is a front view of one embodiment of a digital display
device for displaying digital messages to an on-board train crew,
in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram of a defect detector system
capable of digital communication, in accordance with a second
embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a method for monitoring the
operational status of a railcar moving along a railroad track using
the defect detection system of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, a system and method which
allows for the transfer of both digital and analog information,
such as messages and/or alarms, between the wayside defect
detection equipment and the on-board train crew is provided. As
discussed in more detail hereinafter, this communication may be
accomplished via at least one of two (2) ways. Referring to FIG. 5,
one way this may be accomplished is to upgrade the current wayside
radio system and/or the current on-board locomotive radio system to
be capable of digital communication, i.e. have the capability to
transmit and/or receive digital data. In this situation, the analog
message data generated for transmission by the wayside radio system
is converted into digital format and transmitted to the on-board
locomotive radio via the voice channel currently used by the
dispatcher. The digital message data may then be communicated to
the on-board train crew via digital and/or analog means, such as
either a digital display 600 (as shown in FIG. 6) and/or an audio
enunciation device.
Referring to FIG. 7, another way this may be accomplished is to
replace the existing key wayside defect detection equipment and/or
the on-board locomotive radio with new equipment that is capable of
supporting digital communications. It should be appreciated that
the system and method of the present invention not only allows for
reduced airtime on congested dispatch radio channels since digital
broadcast takes much less time than a voice transmission, but it
also eliminates or reduces the possibility of misunderstood
broadcasts and the consequential necessity of having to initiate
the re-broadcast of information. Additionally, the present
invention provides the capability to "store" messages for recall to
re-check information sent, such as the side and axle location of an
alarm. Moreover, messages could also be retained for review when
the train pulls into a rail yard and/or enters service for
maintenance allowing for the generation of trend data related to
either train components and/or wayside equipment. Thus, collected
wayside information can be saved or retained onboard the locomotive
or be transferred to a data management system. This data can then
be downloaded when the locomotive gets to a yard where high-speed
data downloading systems are typically available.
The existing system(s) can be easily upgraded to provide digital
and/or analog capability allowing the existing systems to be easily
migrated from analog voice to digital messaging. In this situation,
the system can be configured to selective broadcast traditional
analog voice information and/or digital information as desired,
such as after confirmation that a passing train is digitally
equipped. As such, the present invention contemplates that the
system can be configured to handle both analog as well as digital
transmissions so that the crew members of trains that are digitally
capable and trains that are not digitally capable can both hear
and/or see the information.
It should be appreciated that the digital messaging system of the
present invention may also be backward compatible with the current
analog voice systems, thus allowing the entire existing radio
network to be gracefully upgraded, wherein the upgrades can be
performed to the locomotive radio systems and the wayside radios
systems independent of one another. In accordance with the present
invention, the digital messaging system may also be configured into
a variety of configurations capable of implementing the method of
the present invention, wherein two (2) of these configurations are
discussed in greater detail hereinafter. The first configuration is
referred to as an "analog plus digital" configuration and the
second configuration is referred to as a "digital with analog"
configuration. The first configuration, i.e. the "analog plus
digital" configuration, is considered to be the simplest system to
implement and is intended to have the digital messaging used in
conjunction with the analog voice system on every broadcast (or on
selected broadcasts). For this configuration, the wayside radio
does not need to make a positive identification with a passing
train. Instead, an analog and digital message is broadcast, with
the analog message being broadcast first and the digital message
being broadcast shortly thereafter. This allows the train crew to
hear the broadcast as they typically would, but also gives a
digitally capable train crew the ability to receive and/or transmit
digital data via a digital locomotive radio, thus allowing the
message to be displayed and/or stored in the on-board radio.
The second configuration, i.e. the "digital with analog"
configuration, is a system that is configured for primarily digital
messaging, but that can handle analog voice messaging when required
to support trains that are not equipped for digital communications.
To implement digital messaging with a mix of trains that are not
all capable of receiving digital information, the wayside defect
detector system, namely the wayside digital radio, must "know"
whether a passing train is capable of digital communications. To
successfully determine this, the wayside digital radio may identify
the passing train in a variety of ways as discussed in more detail
hereinafter. In this configuration, when a passing train is
detected by the wayside defect detector system, the wayside defect
detector system queries the train and identifies whether the train
is equipped for digital messaging. If the train is equipped for
digital messaging, the wayside digital radio will inhibit any
transmission requests by the wayside defect detector system and not
pass on any modulation input from the wayside defect detector
system. The wayside digital radio will encode and send the digital
message it receives from the wayside defect detect system to the
on-board digital radio. The on-board digital radio will acknowledge
receipt of the digital transmission to the wayside digital radio
and if the message was received without error, communication will
be terminated/continued.
However, if there was an error in the received data, the on-board
digital radio will request that the wayside digital radio resend
the data message transmission. In the event the wayside digital
radio does not get a correct acknowledgement of the data
transmission, the wayside digital radio will log an error and send
an error message to the wayside defect detector system and/or
provide a hardware signal indication that an error has occurred. If
the train is not equipped for digital messaging or if the train
does not respond to the initial query by the wayside digital radio,
the wayside digital radio will allow normal analog transmissions to
be made between the wayside defect detector system and the on-board
train radio.
It should be appreciated that although several methods for
identifying whether a passing train is equipped with digital
messaging capability exist, any method and/or device suitable to
the desired end purpose may be used. For example, one method for
identifying whether a train is equipped with digital messaging
capability involves requiring the train crew to acknowledge a query
transmitted by the wayside digital radio. In this case, the wayside
digital radio may initiate a query by transmitting one part of a
"handshake" message that would be displayed on a digitally equipped
train radio. If the train does not have a digitally equipped radio,
the message is not displayed and therefore cannot be acknowledged
by the on-board train crew. In this case, the wayside defect
detector messaging will be done via traditional analog broadcasts.
However, if the train is digital message capable, then the on-board
train crew will see the message and reply with the remaining half
of the "handshake" message. If the wayside digital radio receives
the proper response from the on-board digital radio, the wayside
digital radio will inhibit any analog transmissions and only make
digital message transmissions.
Another method for identifying whether a train is equipped with
digital messaging capability involves using Identification (ID)
Tags that can be read by remote scanners (i.e. tag readers). In
this case, when the wayside defect detection system has detected a
train, the train ID information is read from an ID tag that is
disposed on the train and the train identification information is
passed on to the wayside digital radio. The wayside digital radio
then sends a query using the train ID information in its digital
message. If the train does not have a digitally equipped radio, the
message is not understood, so it cannot acknowledge the query. As
such, the defect detector messaging will be performed via
traditional analog broadcasts. However, if the train is digital
message enabled, the crew will identify the train ID information as
their train and make the appropriate response via the on-board
digital radio. When the wayside digital radio receives the correct
acknowledgement to its query, it will inhibit any analog
transmissions and only make digital message transmissions.
Still yet another method for identifying whether a train is
equipped with digital messaging capability involves the automatic
identification of the train using the aforementioned train ID tag.
This method is similar to that discussed hereinabove, but
eliminates the crewmember from having to manually acknowledge the
query from the wayside digital radio. It should be appreciated that
this identification method could be used to identify a train via a
location, a direction and/or a speed using a Global Positioning
System (GPS). For example, assume that the on-board digital radio
includes a GPS receiver or has access to GPS information for the
train. Further, assume that the wayside digital radio has GPS
information for its own location. In this case, when a train is
detected, the wayside digital radio initiates a query to the
passing train, wherein the query may contain the GPS coordinates
for the wayside digital radio (i.e. the query asks the train if it
is the train that just passed the location identified by the GPS
coordinates given). If the train does not have a digitally equipped
radio, the message is not understood, so it cannot acknowledge the
query, which means that defect detector messaging will be done via
traditional analog broadcasts. However, if the train does have a
digitally equipped radio, the on-board digital radio will compare
the location coordinates sent in the query with the current
coordinates received by the GPS system. If there is a match (within
a certain margin of error), the on-board digital radio will
acknowledge the query. If the coordinates do not match (within a
certain margin of error), then the on-board digital radio will not
acknowledge the transmission. If the wayside digital radio receives
a proper acknowledgement to the query it sent, all analog messages
will be inhibited and replaced with digital messages.
Furthermore, if operating in dual track territory and the GPS
coordinates are not accurate enough to distinguish which track the
train is traveling on, the wayside digital radio may be used to
supply train direction and train speed, as may be determined by the
wayside equipment, along with the wayside GPS location coordinates
to further identify the train. Consequently, the on-board radio may
also be used to determine the train speed and direction from the
train GPS system and may be used to validate the query from the
wayside digital radio. This could be useful in the situation where
two (2) trains are passing the wayside defect detection system and
the GPS coordinates are not accurate enough to distinguish one
train from the other. In this case, knowing the speed and/or
direction of the travel of the train would allow the wayside defect
detection system identify one train from another.
Referring again to FIG. 5, a first embodiment of a digital
messaging system 500 is shown and includes a wayside detection
system 502 communicated with an on-board voice radio 504 via an
on-board digital radio interface 506 to allow for the transfer of
data between the wayside detection system 502 and the on-board
voice radio 504. It should be appreciated that the wayside
detection system 502 may include at least one sensing device 508
which communicates sensor data to the wayside detection system 502,
wherein the sensor data may be communicated to the wayside
detection system 502 in analog format and then converted to a
digital format via the wayside detection system 502 and/or the
sensor data may be communicated to the wayside detection system 502
in digital format. Additionally, the wayside detection system 502
may be communicated with the on-board voice radio 504 via the
digital radio interface 506 using any communications method
suitable to the desired end purpose, such as a serial
communications and/or a parallel communications. It should be
appreciated that the present invention contemplates that the
digital data and/or the analog data being broadcasted may be
checked for errors to insure complete and/or correct data
transfer.
It should be appreciate that the digital radio interface 506 may
allow for the on-board voice radio 504 to be upgraded for digital
communication. For example, the existing on-board voice radio 504
may be retrofitted with a digital modem using specialized data
protocols to allow receipt and display of messages from the wayside
detection system 502. Once the digital messages have been received
by the existing on-board voice radio 504 from the wayside detection
system 502, the digital messages may be displayed to the on-board
train crew via a digital display 600 (See FIG. 6) and/or the
digital messages may be enunciated to the on-board train crew via a
voice message over the radio speaker.
The present invention contemplates that the wayside detection
system 502 may provide the on-board digital radio 506 with the
information that needs to be broadcast to the train in a formatted
text message. For example, the information broadcast to the train
may include information that is to be broadcast to the on-board
train crew and that is to be stored in a memory location for future
download, wherein the desired action by the on-board digital radio
may be triggered by predetermined keywords. For example, consider
the situation where the wayside detection system 502 broadcasts
information to a passing train, wherein the information includes
wayside equipment information, train information and other
information not necessarily important to the on-board crew members.
When the portion of the broadcasted information that needs to be
communicated to the on-board crew is identified, a keyword is
inserted into the message, wherein the keyword is recognized by the
on-board digital radio. When the on-board digital radio recognizes
the keyword, the on-board digital radio may digitally packetize the
information associated with that keyword. The digital packet(s) may
then be checked for errors and communicated to the on-board crew
members.
Referring again to FIG. 7, a second embodiment of a digital
messaging system 700 is shown and includes a wayside detection
system 702 directly communicated with an on-board digital radio 704
to allow for the transfer of data between the wayside detection
system 702 and the on-board digital radio 704. As above, it should
be appreciated that the wayside detection system 702 may include at
least one sensing device 706 which communicates sensor data to the
wayside detection system 702. The sensor data may be communicated
to the wayside detection system 702 in analog format and then
converted to a digital format via the wayside detection system 702
and/or the sensor data may be communicated to the wayside detection
system 702 in digital format. The wayside detection system 702 may
be communicated with the digital radio 704 via any communications
method suitable to the desired end purpose, such as a serial
communications and/or a parallel communications. It should be
appreciated that the digital communications allow for the digital
data to be checked for errors to insure complete and/or correct
data transfer. Once the digital messages have been received from
the wayside detection system 702, the digital messages may be
displayed to the on-board train crew via a digital display 600 (See
FIG. 6) and/or the digital messages may be enunciated to the
on-board train crew via a voice message over the radio speaker.
Referring to FIG. 8, a block diagram describing a method 800 for
monitoring an operational characteristic of a railcar moving along
a railroad track is shown. As discussed hereinabove, the wayside
monitoring system generates data responsive to at least one
operational characteristic of a passing railcar, as shown in
operational block 802, wherein the data may include alarm status,
train information, and/or sensor data. It should be appreciated
that this alarm status, train information, and/or sensor data may
be generated as digital data, ascii text, and/or may be analog data
that has been converted into digital data. Also, the sensor data
may include data responsive to any detectable condition and/or
characteristic of a passing train, such as hot wheel data and/or
hot bearing data. The generated data may then be converted into
digital data, as shown in operational block 804. As discussed in
greater detail hereinbefore, a query of the on-board digital radio
is then conducted by the wayside digital radio to identify if the
passing train is equipped for digital communications, as shown in
operational block 806. If the train is equipped for digital
communications, then the wayside digital radio then transmits the
alarm status, train information, and/or sensor data to the on-board
digital radio of the passing train via the dispatch voice channel,
as shown in operational block 808. It should be appreciated that if
the train is not equipped for digital communications, then only
analog voice transmission will occur via the dispatch voice
channel, as shown in operational block 810. Once the on-board
digital radio has received the transmitted alarm status, train
information, and/or sensor data, the alarm status, train
information, and/or sensor data is communicated to the on-board
crew members, as shown in operational block 812. As discussed
hereinbefore, this may be accomplished by displaying the digital
data via a digital display device and/or by enunciating the data
messages over the digital radio speaker.
It should be appreciated that the alarm status may include any
alarm status information available suitable to the desired end
purpose such as Hot Journal Alarm and/or Dragging Equipment
Detected Alarm. Additionally, the train information may include any
type of information desired, such as train
location/direction/velocity information, railway/train property
information, railway/train safety information, railway/train
warning information and/or any other type of information the
railroad chooses to transmit with the defect detector equipment.
Furthermore, sensor data may include any type of sensor data,
sensor related data or sensor equipment related data suitable to
the desired end purpose. For example, sensor data may include
individual wayside sensor data from sensors disposed along or in
the vicinity of the rails.
It should be appreciated that the digital sensor data may include,
but not be limited to, a physical characteristic data of the wheel
assembly such as temperature data for the entire wheel assembly
and/or a single component of the wheel assembly (i.e. bearing
temperature, brake temperature, etc.). Moreover, the digital sensor
data may also include, but not be limited to, wheel assembly data
regarding the number and/or location of the wheel assembly with
respect to the train and/or a specific railcar. As discussed
hereinbefore, the vehicle and the wheel assemblies may be
identified by employing an identification tag which would be
disposed adjacent each and/or selected wheel assemblies. In this
case, as the railcar passes by the wayside detection system, the
identification tag could be `read` by the wayside detection system,
wherein the identification tag may communicate the wheel assembly
identification data to the wayside detection system. This
information may then be communicated to the on-board crewmembers or
to a central office.
At least one of wayside detection system and the on-board digital
radio may be communicated with a remote device to allow the digital
sensor data to be communicated to a remote site, such as a central
office. This would allow the central office personnel to
communicate to off-site personnel that a problem has occurred, the
location of the particular railcar experiencing the problem and
which component has experienced the problem, greatly enhancing
diagnostic and operational awareness of the operational condition
of the railcars in the train. Furthermore, all or only a portion of
the generated sensor data may be in digital format. Although it is
possible that one or all of the elements of wayside detection
portion may generate analog data, it should be appreciated that
this analog data may be at least partially converted to digital
data before being communicated. It should be appreciated that the
at least one monitoring element may include any sensing devices
suitable to the desired end purpose, such as hot bearing and hot
wheel detectors, vertical and horizontal wheel load (or impact)
detectors, drag detectors and high wide detectors.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, the processing of at
least a portion of the method in FIG. 8 may be implemented by a
controller disposed internal, external or internally and externally
to a digital messaging system. In addition, processing of at least
a portion of the method in FIG. 8 may be implemented through a
controller operating in response to a computer program. In order to
perform the prescribed functions and desired processing, as well as
the computations therefore (e.g. execution control algorithm(s),
the control processes prescribed herein, and the like), the
controller may includes, but not be limited to, a processor(s),
computer(s), memory, storage, register(s), timing, interrupt(s),
communication interface(s), and input/output signal interface(s),
as well as combination comprising at least one of the
foregoing.
Additionally, the method in FIG. 8 may be embodied in the form of a
computer or controller implemented processes. The method in FIG. 8
may also be embodied in the form of computer program code
containing instructions embodied in tangible media, such as floppy
diskettes, CD-ROMs, hard drives, and/or any other computer-readable
medium, wherein when the computer program code is loaded into and
executed by a computer or controller, the computer or controller
becomes an apparatus for practicing the methods. The method of FIG.
8 can also be embodied in the form of computer program code, for
example, whether stored in a storage medium, loaded into and/or
executed by a computer or controller, or transmitted over some
transmission medium, such as over electrical wiring or cabling,
through fiber optics, or via electromagnetic radiation, wherein
when the computer program code is loaded into and executed by a
computer or a controller, the computer or controller becomes an
apparatus for practicing the invention. When implemented on a
general-purpose microprocessor the computer program code segments
may configure the microprocessor to create specific logic
circuits.
While the invention has been described with reference to an
exemplary embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the
art that various changes, omissions and/or additions may be made
and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without
departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. In addition,
many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or
material to the teachings of the invention without departing from
the scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not
be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode
contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the
invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of
the appended claims. Moreover, unless specifically stated any use
of the terms first, second, etc. do not denote any order or
importance, but rather the terms first, second, etc. are used to
distinguish one element from another.
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